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FIND OUT MORE. Fascism 431 • Nuclear Energy 167 • World War I 426–427

The Holocaust (meaning “sacrifice by burning”) was an attempt to

murder the entire Jewish people. German concentration camps had

existed since the 1930s but this act of genocide was accelerated by

Nazi leaders at Wannsee in 1942. About six million Jews died.

HOLOCAUST

ATOM BOMB

Throughout the war the USA had secretly

been developing the most destructive weapon

ever known – the atom bomb. This produced

energy by nuclear fission. In August 1945,

the USA dropped two atom bombs on Japan,

which then surrendered.

Blitzkrieg means “lightning war” in German. The term was first

used in 1939 to describe the tactics of high-speed warfare which

launched the Nazi invasion of Europe. It was made possible

by new technology and weapons, and tactical thinking.

BLITZKRIEG

WHAT WERE THE NEW WAYS OF WAGING WAR?

Blitzkrieg used fast tanks and aircraft to by-pass

ground defences. Paratroops were dropped behind

enemy lines. Civilians died in cities that were

bombed. The British shortened blitzkrieg to “Blitz”,

to describe the massive bombing of their cities. The

Allies also adopted new tactics and bombed German

cities into rubble. This war also saw the development

of radar for detecting enemy aircraft, as well as

flying bombs, and rockets.

WHO DISCOVERED THE CONCENTRATION CAMPS?

In 1945, as Allied forces advanced, they found evidence

of this monstrous crime. Jews from all over Europe had

been rounded up, forced into cattle wagons on trains,

and taken to prison camps, along with other peoples

the Nazis despised, such as Roma (Gypsies). Some

victims were forced to work as slave labour, others

were killed immediately in gas chambers.

WHY DID THE USA DROP THE BOMB?

The United States government wished to bring the war

to a rapid end and prevent the loss of any more

troops. Critics of the bomb believed that the extent of

its power, and the resulting loss of so many civilian

lives, was morally unacceptable.

AIRBORNE TERROR 3

The German Ju-87 (Stuka) bomber was used to attack shipping, tanks,

or fortifications. This terrifying machine could dive at an angle of 80°.

It was used in the Battle of Britain and on the Eastern Front.

THE MUSHROOM CLOUD 3

Bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. In

Hiroshima, over 78,500 people died in one minute. Many

victims died years later from the effects of radiation.

The assault was on

five beaches along

80 km (50 miles) of

coastal defences

156,000 troops

crossed the

English Channel

1 DEATH CAMP

From 1940 to 1945, Auschwitz, in

Poland, was the site of one of the

worst death camps. Three to four

million people, including Poles

and Jews, were murdered there.

WINSTON CHURCHILL

1874–1965

Churchill had a long and

controversial political career,

which most people regarded

as over in the years before the

war. However, his outspoken

opposition to Nazi Germany

made him the ideal choice for

Prime Minister in 1940. His

determination, eloquence, and

sense of humour made him a

popular and successful leader.